KU guard Devonte' Graham on his play recently: 'Pretty bad, to be honest'

Jesse Newell

Thursday

Feb 19, 2015 at 4:13 PM

LAWRENCE — Three seconds after checking into Monday’s game, Kansas guard Devonte’ Graham found himself trapped in the backcourt by West Virginia players Nathan Adrian and Juwan Staten.

The freshman’s jump pass never made it to teammate Perry Ellis. The 6-foot-9 Adrian tipped it with his left hand, and Staten tracked down the deflection in the corner for a steal.

Graham’s night didn’t get much better from there. The 6-foot-2-inch point guard had no points and a career-high three turnovers in nine minutes during the Jayhawks’ 62-61 loss.

It’s why, when asked to assess his own play lately, Graham spoke candidly.

"Pretty bad, to be honest," Graham said Thursday. "I haven’t been myself lately. But it’s something that I can turn around, just making plays for others. It’s not something that’s really hurting me or anything, but I can play much better."

When Graham returned from a sprained toe on Jan. 10, KU’s backcourt received an immediate boost.

Graham played at least 15 minutes for seven straight Big 12 games, giving the Jayhawks an additional ballhandler to go alongside Frank Mason and also a dangerous two-guard look when the pair were together on the court.

"I think Devonte’ can do some more positive things," KU coach Bill Self said. "He’s certainly shown us he can."

The Raleigh, N.C., native hasn’t played more than 15 minutes in any of KU’s last five contests. His three turnovers in nine minutes also matched the number of giveaways he had in his first seven Big 12 games — a stretch that totaled 150 minutes.

"Coach has just been telling me I haven’t been as aggressive as I was when I first came back," Graham said. "He thinks I’m being too passive, and I kind of agree with him. I’m playing kind of soft, I think."

Graham’s mini-slump also has affected Self’s use of Mason. The 5-11 guard played 37 minutes at West Virginia while facing a full-court press for most of the first half.

"He got so tired the other night," Self said. "Most of the time if you bring it up, you’ve got to go full speed because you got two guys running at you."

It’s the main reason Graham is so vital to the Jayhawks. The quick guard is KU’s best option to give Mason a breather, which could potentially lead to better play from the sophomore late in games.

"I do think we need a little bit more from him. That’s not being critical at all," Self said of Graham. "That’s just factual."

Graham, for his part, is working to improve. He talks to assistant coach Norm Roberts almost every day after practice while trying to learn exactly what the coaches want from their guards.

"Coach (Self) was just telling us the other day that we’ve got three weeks until the end of the season. It’s coming real fast," Graham said. "We’ve just got to stay focused and try to play our best so that we can go far in the tournament and end the season like we want to end it."

CLIFF GRINDING THROUGH — Self was asked Thursday about the health of freshman forward Cliff Alexander, who has battled through back and chest injuries.

"I think Cliff’s body probably feels more beat up than it ever has in his life, (but) I think he’s holding up fine," Self said. "A bruised sternum isn’t fun. You have a bruised sternum, every time you get hit, it hurts. Then he has had some other things.

"But you know what, everybody’s got something, especially this time of year. To me, when people don’t feel good, obviously you want them to feel better and that stuff, but you also got to will yourself, ‘Hey, I’m fine.’ As soon as you start believing something’s wrong with you, your brain will tell your body that it is. He doesn’t have anything that should remotely keep him from playing at a high level."

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